Vitamin D and Psoriasis

Study explains why vitamin D may benefit patients with psoriasis.
WebMD (5/12, Boyles) reported, "Ultraviolet light therapy and vitamin D creams are widely prescribed treatments for psoriasis, and now a new study may help explain why they work for so many patients." Investigators "say the vitamin D-based treatments increase the binding of a peptide called cathelicidin to DNA, which, in turn, inhibits the inflammatory response that triggers psoriasis." This "finding may one day lead to better treatments for the painful skin condition that specifically target cathelicidin." The study was published in the May 11 issue of the journal Science Translational Medicine.